Page 16 of Little Child Gone

“I came in early to test the swabs I took from the floor around the chest. It’s clearly a body,” she told them. “Matt let me take the floorboards, so we’re going to try to get a full biological profile today to run through CODIS. I also collected hair from the flooring. Assuming it has epithelial cells, we can test for DNA.”

He studied her intently. “And you’re good?” Garcia had been adamant Courtney’s mental health take priority after the events in the fall. He’d have no problem keeping her in the lab if she started struggling.

“I’m good.”

“All right,” Garcia said. “I understand you need to be in the field for your mental health. But you need to be honest if you have a setback. There’s no shame in addressing your trauma, Courtney.”

“I will, I promise.”

Nikki headed for her office. The poinsettia on Nikki’s desk had died during the holiday break. Nikki swept it off her desk into the trash.

She pulled the shades down a few inches to block out the glare of the morning sun off the snow outside and then sat down and turned on her office computer. Her wedding photo with Rory in his tux and Lacey in her pretty flower girl dress made her smile. Rory was still emotional about Lacey’s request.

Even though she’d checked her messages during her week off, she still had several new ones, including profile requests for crimes in Wisconsin and Iowa.

Matt Kline had also emailed over all of his property paperwork. He and Spencer would meet them at the property at ten, as she’d requested.

Right now, they knew next to nothing about these two poor victims or the Hendricksons, but that was about to change. Her first call was to Matt’s attorney, Brian Cass.

Nikki called the attorney, hoping she didn’t get voicemail. A gravelly voice answered her call. “Brian Cass.”

“Mr. Cass, this is Nikki Hunt. I’m calling at Matt Kline’s request.”

“Yes, Matt said you’d be contacting me,” Cass said.

“You’re not busy?” she clarified.

“Not at all,” he answered. “I’m actually mostly retired. I’ve just retained a few clients. I was the Klines’ estate and wealth management attorney. Matt doesn’t trust many people, especially now.”

“I can’t blame him.” Nikki flipped to a fresh sheet in her notebook. “Did he tell you what we found yesterday?”

“He did. Frankly, I’m still stunned. I debated contacting Stephanie, but I thought I’d speak with you first.”

Nikki caught the edge in his voice. “I appreciate that. I’ve heard she’s tough to deal with.”

“You’re familiar with her, then?” Cass asked.

“More than I’d like to be,” Nikki said. “She’s a great defense attorney.”

Cass snorted. “Ruthless is the better term.” He sighed. “I’m afraid she’s been quite difficult to deal with. I’m certainly no criminal attorney, but knowing how Stephanie operates, I knew that you and I should speak first.”

“How does she operate?” Nikki asked.

“It’s her way or the highway,” Cass said. “Fortunately, I didn’t have to deal with her much during the purchase, since their family attorney handled things. She refused to compromise to sell the house. She would have been happy to let it rot. Her words, not mine.”

“What did she want?” Nikki asked. “Twenty acres and a house in desperate need of a remodel seems pretty cut and dry.”

“Her brother Patrick wanted to have the barn and house restored so they could donate the property to the historical society.” He snickered. “Poor guy didn’t have a chance in hell, even though he’s a retired army major. Stephanie wanted to sell.”

“Was she the sole executor of her father’s will?”

“Fortunately, no. They were co-executors. Patrick had a copy of the will. I got the impression the amendment likely would have been buried if Stephanie had been sole executor.”

“What was the amendment to Karl’s will?” Nikki asked.

“I don’t know,” Cass said. “Whatever it was kept the estate from closing for several years.” Cass cleared his throat. “My understanding is that it was only resolved late this summer.”

“When did Matt approach you about buying the property?” Nikki asked.

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